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Which Lenders Made the Worst Home Loans?

The worst mortgage loans were made in 2006, according to research by data provider MDA DataQuick. And those loans are begining to blow up now. According to DataQuick’s numbers, the lenders with the most foreclosure related filings in this year’s third quarter in California—-a hot bed of dicey loans were:

Countrywide (now Bank of America) with 7,583 default filings.

Washington Mutual, 5,146.

Wells Fargo, 4,425.

Bank of America loans not made by Countrywide accounted for 1,979 more filings and World Savings, now a part of Wells Fargo, had an additional 4,237. The numbers show the extent to which just a handful of big banks are bearing the burden of the mortgage crisis.

While World Savings, formerly Golden West Financial, had the highest percentage of loans from that 2006 period default at 11.9%, its stinky loans were nothing compared to the subprime orginators’ dismal record. Here are some of the numbers for them:

Some of this bad news is circular because First Franklin was acquired by Merrill Lynch which was subsequently bought by Bank of America. If you’re having trouble getting a loan officer from B of A on the line, now you know why, he’s busy!

The overall number of mortgage default notices filed against California homeowners fell last quarter compared with the prior three-month period. A total of 111,689 default notices were sent out during the July-through-September period, down 10.3 percent from the prior quarter, but still up 18.5 percent from the third quarter 2008. DataQuick cites changes in lender foreclosure policies and an uptick in the number of mortgages being renegotiated.

The firm says lenders may have intentionally slowed down the pace of foreclosures. “If so, it’s not out of the goodness of their hearts,” said John Walsh, DataQuick president. “It’s because they’ve concluded that flooding the market with cheap foreclosures in this economic environment may not be in their best financial interest.”